


have you got a map? (because i got lost in your eyes)

by bicroft



Series: SidGeno Tumblr Prompts [11]
Category: Men's Hockey RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, M/M, Not a hockey player Geno, Still a hockey player Sid
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-25
Updated: 2017-06-25
Packaged: 2018-11-18 16:52:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,382
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11294775
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bicroft/pseuds/bicroft
Summary: Zhenya was going to die in this cruel, cold wasteland.Or, not die, maybe. He’d probably just wander around and stress eat his way through most of his spending money until Sasha found him- but, he was cold, and it was very, very cruel of Sasha to ditch him like this when this whole trip had been his idea in the first place.





	have you got a map? (because i got lost in your eyes)

**Author's Note:**

> I'm finally back to working on prompts, holy shit, it's been so long. 
> 
> Anon asked for: "an AU where Sidney runs into a lost and barely English speaking Geno who lost his tour group?"

 

Zhenya was going to die in this cruel, cold wasteland.

Or, not _die,_ maybe. He’d probably just wander around and stress eat his way through most of his spending money until Sasha found him- but, he _was_ cold, and it was very, very cruel of Sasha to ditch him like this when this whole trip had been his idea in the first place.

“We need to broaden our horizons, Zhenya,” he’d said, his first semester of college making him all stupidly ‘enlightened.’ “There’s a whole world to see outside Russia!”

Zhenya knew there was a whole world outside Russia, and he was sure he’d love to see it, but working as much as he did to be able to afford to pay for his part of the rent for their shitty two-bedroom apartment in Moscow instead of moving back home to Magnitogorsk, it just wasn’t realistic- and, that’d been what he’d told Sasha, the first few times he’d brought it up.

Sasha was nothing if not persistent, though, and eventually Zhenya had caved and found himself saving up and chipping in for a two-week trip touring Canada during Sasha’s winter break the next year.

Now, they’d been on the trip for about five days, and it had been mostly incident free (if you didn’t count that afternoon in Saskatoon, which Zhenya didn’t, because he was willfully repressing it), but Zhenya had known there was going to be trouble from day one, when Sasha had spotted a Swedish guy about their age in the group. It didn’t seem to matter that Zhenya was sure the guy didn’t speak Russian, and that he _knew_ Sasha didn’t know a word of Swedish; Sasha was nothing if not persistent and, well, he _had_ always had a thing for blonds.

Today, Sasha’s week of wooing had finally won out, and the two of them had decided that sharing native tongues didn’t matter when they could share _actual_ tongues. They’d stayed back at the hotel, which left Zhenya alone with the rest of the tour group, who he really hadn’t gotten to know too well. And, for the most part, it’d been fine; they’d wandered around the little Nova Scotian town they were in, and it was nice.

Until, of course, Zhenya looked down for a _second_ to look at a poster that he thought was maybe about a youth hockey program, judging by the pictures, and then looked up to see that his tour group was nowhere to be found. Which left him where he was now: standing alone in the cold, forlorn and stress eating the single squished chocolate bar he’d found at the bottom of his backpack.

“Nice shirt.”

Zhenya knew enough English form his few night classes to know what that meant. He turned around to smile at the man who’d addressed him, and found himself face to face with an angel instead.

“Euh,” he said eloquently. “I’m, uh… thank. Canada good hockey.” He’d picked up a few jerseys when they’d been in Vancouver, and a Team Canada one had been among them, which was what he had the _blessed_ good fortune of wearing today.

The angel laughed, and it sounded simultaneously like a hyena-goose lovechild and the best thing Zhenya had ever heard. “Yeah, we’re pretty good at it,” he said. “I’m guessing you’re not from here?”

Again, Zhenya knew just enough English to pick the important buts out of the question. “From Russia,” he said, shaking his head. “Come for tour, but… lost.”

“Oh!” the man said. “That _sucks_ ; do you know what hotel you’re staying at? I can help you get back there, maybe.”

Zhenya paused, but shook his head again. “Has… two tree?” he offered.

The angel hummed. “I’m… not sure I know where that one is,” he said. “But, I can definitely walk around town with you until we find your group, or a way back? If you want, I mean; I know the town pretty well.”

Zhenya nodded enthusiastically, even though the only thing he’d really gotten from the statement was ‘walk with you’ and ‘find your group’. He’d take whatever time with his angel he could get. “Very nice, thank you,” he said, giving with he hoped was a winsome smile. “Not like be alone.”

“I know what you mean,” his angel said, and he smiled back, so Zhenya figured his hadn’t looked too crazy. “What’s your name?”

“Evgeni,” Zhenya said, because he might be contemplating how best to express ‘run away with me to a different continent, you beautiful gift from god’ with his limited English, but, it was also maybe a little too soon for ‘Zhenya’.

“Evgeni,” the angel said. His accent made it so his butchered it, but, it was cute enough that Zhenya let it slide. “I’m Sidney.”

“Sidney,” Zhenya said, and he probably murdered the name, too, but Sidney just smiled and nodded. Why did angels have to have such weird names?

“Where was your tour headed, do you know?” Sidney asked as they started walking. Zhenya couldn’t help but notice the number of eyes they had on them, all of a sudden- but, everyone liked looking at pretty things, so he chalked it up to Sidney’s presence and tried to push it aside.

“Hockey museum,” Zhenya said, because that had been the only reason he hadn’t stayed at the hotel, too. Well, that, and the fear that Sasha and his new friends might get bored of fucking in his room, and come to sully theirs.

Sidney made a face, but it he smiled again so quickly after that Zhenya thought made he’d imagined the expression. “I know where that is,” he said. “We can definitely walk.”

Zhenya smiled at him again and let Sidney lead the way. He talked as they walked through the town, probably giving Zhenya his own tour, but most of it went over Zhenya’s head, half due to his limited English skills, and half due to the fact that he couldn’t be bothered to drag his eyes away from Sidney’s ass long enough to take in the sights. Sidney wasn’t an angel, he decided; an ass like that was _clearly_ sinful. Instead, he had to be some kind of incubus; a demon of desire, leading Zhenya to certain doom.

Somehow, Zhenya didn’t think he’d mind going out like that.

Five minutes into walking, Zhenya’s stomach decided it had had about enough of being ignored, and vocalized that thought in the loudest possible manner. He flushed when Sidney stopped in his tracks and turned to face him, obviously concerned. “Have you eaten?” he asked.

“Eat hotel breakfast,” Zhenya said. “Early, though. Long time.”

“I know somewhere we can stop and eat, maybe?” Sidney offered, and Zhenya nodded quickly.

The restaurant they stopped off at was tiny, and the hostess greeted Sidney by name and with a smile, so Zhenya figured he must be a regular. They were seated at a corner booth in the back, and Zhenya stared uncomprehendingly at the menu that he had been handed for a full minute before Sidney took pity on him and the probable look of obvious terror on his face and said: “They make really good burgers here. Best in Nova Scotia.”

“Good,” Zhenya sighed, setting the menu down. “You live here long time?”

“I grew up in Cole Harbor mostly, yeah,” Sidney said, an odd look on his face that, like the other one, passed so quickly Zhenya wasn’t sure if it had even been there in the first place. “I don’t like here during the year, though; I work in the States and come back for the summer, when I can. It’s nice, I love it here.”

“Very nice,” Zhenya agreed, but he’d probably say that about any town Sidney was in.

“What about you, then?” Sidney asked after they’d ordered. “Where are you from?”

“Magnitogorsk,” Zhenya said. “Is… small, mostly factory town. I’m live in Moscow now, though, with Sasha.”

“Sasha?” Sidney asked, sounding a little like he’d been let down. “Is Sasha your… girlfriend?”

Zhenya blinked at him for a moment, trying to figure out if he’d heard him correctly, and then burst out laughing. He had to reign himself in after a moment, though, because now Sidney looked sad and confused, and that was too much for Zhenya’s heart to handle. “Sasha is boy,” he wheezed. “In Russia, nickname for Alexander. Not date, just live with. Friend.”

“ _Oh_ ,” Sidney said, blushing all the way down his neck. It was _gorgeous_ , and Zhenya had to remind himself that they were in a family restaurant so that he didn’t lean over and follow it with his mouth. “Sorry, I just- I didn’t know.”

“I’m not have girlfriend,” Zhenya said, because it never hurt to spread information. “Or… boyfriend, either.”

This time, Sidney smiled when he said “oh.” “I don’t, either,” he added after a beat. “So… yeah.”

“Good,” Zhenya said, biting his bottom lip to hide a hopeful smile. “Means no one jealous of me for get to spend afternoon with you.”

Sidney laughed again, and it was still as endearing as it had been the first time. Zhenya should probably get his ears checked, when he got home, but right then, he couldn’t bring himself to care.

They’d just gotten their food when a kid approached them, looking shy and holding out a pen and a hockey puck. “Can you sign this?” he asked, and Zhenya frowned for a moment before he realized he was talking to Sidney.

Sidney blushed again, and looked at Zhenya for a second before nodding. “Of course,” he said, voice quiet and gentle, and _oh_ , Zhenya was definitely probably in love with this man.

He signed the puck and handed it back to the kid, who said a quick ‘thank you!’ before he scuttled back to his family, who were all grinning at Sidney- and, after that, it was like the floodgates had opened. Zhenya felt a little bad, really, because Sidney was barely getting a chance to eat through the barrage of people that were coming their way, asking for pictures and autographs. Eventually, he just took to glaring at anyone who was coming their way, and that got the stream to stop pretty quickly. “You famous or something?” he asked once Sidney had actually gotten the chance to eat a little.

“I’m… a local celebrity, I guess,” Sidney said, still a little pink cheeked. “Sorry about all that.”

“No big deal,” Zhenya said, waving off the apology. “Not often I’m go out with famous person. Is fun.”

Sidney laughed, and Zhenya laughed with him, this time. When they finished eating, and the bill came, Zhenya reached for his wallet, but Sidney stopped him. “I’m have money, can get,” Zhenya protested, but Sidney shook his head.

“My treat,” he said. “Not often I get to take good looking strangers out to lunch.”

Zhenya blinked for a second, processing that and making sure he was translating it right before he grinned. “You think I’m good look?”

Sidney flushed- he probably hadn’t meant to say that, then, but he _had_ , and there was no way Zhenya was letting him take it back. “Well, I… yes,” Sidney said, ducking his head a little. Zhenya’s grin got even wider.

“You too,” he said. “Very nice is… pretty. You pretty.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever heard that as a compliment before,” Sidney said, matching Zhenya’s smile as he pulled his card out to pay. “But, I think I like it, coming from you. Thank you.”

“Just true,” Zhenya said, and they both just grinned goofily at each other until their waitress came back with Sidney’s card and they could leave.

Zhenya stayed in step with Sidney this time, as they were walking, and after a few minutes of them just brushing fingers, Sidney reached out and took Zhenya’s hand properly. Zhenya couldn’t fight another stupid grin, gripping Sidney’s hand tight, and swinging their joined hands a little, just to make Sidney laugh again.

As the hockey museum came into sight, though, Sidney dropped his hand and seemed to get a little nervous. Zhenya frowned- but, he understood. Sidney had said he was a local celebrity, and if the number of pucks that had been among the thing Sidney had signed today was any indication, he was famous for something having to do with hockey; of _course_ a hockey museum was probably the last place he wanted to be around. “We’re not have to go, if you’re not want to,” he offered as they got closer. “Can just look for hotel instead.”

“I’m not gonna mess with your vacation, Evgeni,” Sidney said, seeming like he was steeling himself. “And, it’s a nice museum; I’ve been. It’ll be fun.”

Zhenya just shrugged and bumped Sidney’s hand with his, hoping to be a little reassuring. Sidney smiled at him, and he chalked it up as a victory.

The bored looking kid at the ticket booth looked decidedly less bored and more like he was about to pee himself a little when Sidney came up to the booth. “Um,” he said, kind of squeaking. “Can I help you?”

“Two tickets, adult admission,” Sidney said, cool as could be. Zhenya wanted to giggle a little.

“I- of course, sir, that’ll be-” The kid fumbled to ring them up, and Sidney was already pulling a few bills from his pocket, seemingly well versed in this. “Our next tour should be leaving in ten minutes, if you’re interested.”

“I don’t think we’ll need it,” Sidney said, and the kid looked like he wanted to die. Poor guy.

“Have a good day, sir.” he said, and Sidney smiled and gave a polite ‘you too’ before walking back over to Zhenya, and nodding towards the doors.

Sidney ducked his head as soon as they were actually in the building, obviously trying to avoid anyone spotting him, and after a few moments Zhenya took pity on him and took his cap off his head, and gently put it on Sidney’s. Sidney looked startled for a moment, but grateful a second after that, pulling the brim low over his eyes and smiling at Zhenya softly.

The deeper they got in the museum, the more Sidney relaxed as people seemed not to notice him, and eventually, he reached out and took Zhenya’s hand again. It was nice, as was the excited cadence of Sidney’s voice as he talked Zhenya through some of the exhibits. He wasn’t sure what he was saying, most of the time, because the more excited he got, the quicker he spoke, but Zhenya was still enamored by the sound of it.

The closer they got to the end of the museum, though, the more anxious Sidney seemed to get, and he tried to tug Zhenya past the last room entirely. “Still thing,” he said, pulling him back again. “I’m want see everything, on vacation.”

“I’ve been there a dozen times; there’s nothing in that room, really,” Sidney said, and his entire face was bright red, but Zhenya tugged him toward the room again, and this time, he came.

The focal point of the room was a beat-up dryer, which was a little odd to Zhenya, until he started looking at the pictures lining the walls. He couldn’t read much, but he could tell that it was the story of someone growing up; there were a lot of grainy snapshots of a young kid in hockey gear taking shots at what must have been the dryer before it was beat to death.

Sidney was quiet next to him, which seemed a little odd to Zhenya, but he was too engrossed in following the snapshots of this mystery boy as he grew into a mystery man. There were little pieces of memorabilia around the room, too; sticks and jerseys and such to pair with the pictures of the guy, and the farther along he got, the more Zhenya couldn’t shake the feeling that he _knew_ this kid.

It wasn’t until he got to a picture of Sidney lifting the Stanley Cup near the end of the exhibit that it actually hit him. “Is about _you_!” he said, turning around, eyes wide. “Whole room, about you- not just here famous, _NHL_ famous!”

Sidney was bright red, and he wasn’t meeting Zhenya’s eye at all. “I didn’t- you didn’t know, and I didn’t want to sound like an ass, telling you,” he said. “And, it was… it was really nice, having someone not know. Everyone around here, they know me, and everyone _everywhere_ has their opinions and assumptions, and it’s… it was really nice, just being able to get to know someone and have them get to know me back, like a clean slate.”

Zhenya frowned, but, he mostly understood what Sidney was saying, and the sentiment behind it. “I’m like you lot,” he said. “Like you same, if know you play hockey. Or, maybe like you _more_ , but not because famous, just because I love hockey.”

“Yeah?” Sidney said, smiling a little and looking up at him. He looked almost _hopeful_. “I… how long are you in town for?”

“Not long,” Zhenya said, and he’d never regretted it more. “Today, tomorrow, leave next morning. But… I’m give you email, and then number for when get back to Russia and phone work? Then, we keep talk, if you want.”

“I want,” Sidney said, and now it was Zhenya’s turn to look hopeful. “Can I take you to lunch or something, tomorrow? If you’re cool with skipping your tour again.”

“No problem,” Zhenya said, maybe a little too quickly- but, it made Sidney giggle, so, he wasn’t too embarrassed about it.

They were still holding hands when they walked out of the museum, and Sidney didn’t even seem to be worried about people seeing them. They both jumped when there was a shout of “Zhenya!” from somewhere behind them.

“ _Unbelievable.”_ Zhenya turned around to immediately be faced by Sasha. “ _I leave you for one day, and you end up running around with Sidney Crosby!”_

“Uh,” Sidney said, obviously not able to understand Sasha’s rapid-fire Russian, but probably picking up on his name. “Do you know him?”

“Is Sasha,” Zhenya said, exasperated. “Friend- roommate, come with me on trip.” He rolled his eyes, and snapped back to Sasha: “ _It’s not my fault that good things happen to me when you’re not around. You fucked a Swede, I found my dream man_.”

“ _Dream man_ ,” Sasha said, eyes narrowing. “ _Zhenya, are you... did you go out on a date with Sidney Crosby? Is Sidney Crosby your sugar d-”_

 _“Shut up, no_.” Zhenya said before he could finish that truly embarrassing thought. “ _I got lost, he found me, took me to lunch, and showed me around. We hit it off_.”

“ _I cannot believe you got a famous boyfriend just by standing around,”_ Sasha said, almost pouting. Zhenya rolled his eyes again and decided to ignore him and, instead, turned back to Sidney, who looked truly lost. “Sasha help me find way back to hotel, but- write down number for me, I call you when get back to room for make plans for tomorrow?”

“Yeah!” Sidney said, lighting up again. “Yeah, sure!”

He punched his number into Zhenya’s phone, but had Zhenya put in his name, since he didn’t have an English keyboard, and Sidney had no idea how to navigate a Russian one. If Zhenya maybe added a few heart emojis after his name, it wasn’t anyone’s business but his.

He glanced around as he put his phone back in his pocket; no one was paying them any mind, now that Sasha wasn’t being loud, so, he leaned in and pressed a quick kiss to Sid’s cheek. “See you tomorrow,” he said as he pulled away, sure he was just as red in the face as Sidney was.

“See you tomorrow,” Sidney said, and Zhenya squeezed his hand one last time before he made himself walk away.

“ _I guess this trip was a good idea after all, huh_?” Sasha asked, elbowing him in the side as they waited for a cab back to the hotel. “ _I fell in love, you fell in love. Almost makes up for Saskatoon.”_

“ _Nothing will_ ever _make up for Saskatoon_ ,” Zhenya said, deadly serious. “ _But… yeah. Yeah, almost.”_

**Author's Note:**

> hmu @sidsknee; i'm always accepting prompts, even if it'll take me awhile to get around to them. <3 (all my prompts can also be found there, but here, i'm going to lock to registered users after a week.)


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